The Morris County chronicle. [volume] (Morristown, N.J.) 1877-1915, 1887-10-15
AN EXPERT sTENoGRApHER.
A Man Who Can Write One Thing and
Speak Another simultaneously.
How long have YOU lived here?''

opcsAK AUOt00T simultaneously.
.'IIow long have you lived here?''
Tho lawyer was taking the deposition
OF I. witness in his office in the Mills
bl;iIc.le,, The pencil Of the stenographer
Was moving rapidly over his paper, leav-
ils behind it a string of pothooks and
osnes' absurd symbols of speech.
''4oa say that you have known the de-
fenaaIt for the past ten years. Now, I
Want to ask you whether at any time
during that period you ever noticed any
symptom of insanity in his behavior?''
continued the lawyer.
AT the instant the lawyer began this
query the stenographer turned to the re-
porter, who was seated by his side at the
table, and, without stopping his writing
for second, whispered: ssWait mo-
ment and I'll be through. This won't
last much longer. !"
The reporter looked anxiously at the
notes, expecting to see the pencil stop its
travels, or at least at the end of the cues
tions, retrace its steps to revise some
phrases incorrectly transcribed. But it
made no such break. When the lawyer
ended his inquiry the pencil stopped.
''Now, Sir, continued the lawyer
''you may tell me whether you were well
enough acquainted with the defendant to
know whether he showed any weakness
of mind or not?"
Before the stenographer had completed
the second line of his report he again
whispered to the reporter not to be in a
hurry, and, as before, concluded his work
without a particle of apparent Interrupt
ton. This was the last question, and
after the papers were gathered together
and the witness had left the office, the
reporter asked the stenographer whether
he had written correctly all that was said
verbatim, or had only epitomized what
had been spoken.
81 wrote exactly what was said. Why
do you ask?''
''Can you read it without difficulty?''
''Of course I can, otherwise 1 should
not be here; but why do you ask?'
81 didn't see how you could write
down what was being spoken and speak
to me upon another subject at the same
time
''That is easy enough to do, :" responded
the stenographer with laugh, ''when
enough. Shorthand writing is very much
like playing the piano OF repeating some
thing from memory. 1t is mechanical.
| found years ago when was reporting
in a western court, that it was extremely
useful to be able to hear and think of
other things transpiring in the court room
than the evidence itself. I then began
practicing SO that could train myself to
do two separate things at the same time
/ would mentally make note of every
thing occurring around me and keep on
with my writing. At first would make
a mistake OF two, but I gradually got SO
that l could hear everything that was
said and understand it too, nothwith-
standing the fact that my pencil was
moving all the time"
II should think that when you began
to speak it would have thrown you off
your tracl1?''
''It did at first. / learned that by
committing to memory some poem and
repeating it while I was reporting, until
at last l could carry on conversation on
almost any subject and write from die
tation upon one entirely different. It's
very useful accomplishment, but
wouldn't advise you to learn it unless
you intend to become a professional
stenographer, and I wouldn't advise that
unless you have nothing better to do than
to break stones in the streets. New
York Mail and Express.